Chemical Romance
by KaydenceRei
Summary: It was an accident really; Tony didn't know the Hydra device would release a pheromone enhanced mist into the air when he and Natasha found it and he definitely didn't expect it to turn the former assassin on in the presence of one unsuspecting Bruce Banner. Pre-AoU.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note** : Needless to say this is not Rated M because it's not going into that territory people. This T for obvious reasons though. Some oddly humorous situations and jokes will occur that aren't typically kid friendly but there's no mind altering lust drug sex happening, sorry to whoever might have been hoping for that, haha. Just a few not too long chapters that I hope will give you a good laugh :)

 **Chemical Romance** :

" _Now you're in my head  
and it's out of my hands"_

Natasha folded her arms across her chest as Tony stood clad in his Iron Man suit and studied the strange looking cube on a pedestal in the lab. Of all the people she _had_ to be the only one available to actually go with him besides Bruce who had been smart enough to stay on the Quinjet. "You've been staring at that thing for the last ten minutes, Stark," Natasha reminded him as she stepped over to him and the cube, "we had to knock out eleven scientists and two dozen armed guards, you do realize more are bound to show up right?"

"Uh-huh," he murmured with disinterest.

"Tell me—what could you _possibly_ learn about a cube by staring at it?" she asked with an eyebrow quirked up, "if you don't think it's safe—don't touch it, simple as that."

"Yeah, yeah, my scan just finished," Tony told her with a huff of annoyance, "no radiation, or poisons, or any wonky signals coming off the thing—so you know, safety first is my motto."

Natasha rolled her eyes, "That's never been your motto."

"Touche," he admitted. Still, she had absolutely no sense of scientific curiosity and it drove him nuts. For a woman who was so keen on knowing all the details one would think she would have some curiosity for science. He reached out, grasped the device in his hands and he couldn't resist mumbling further about her lack of interest, "You know I really don't understand why people aren't more fascinated by science. Think of all the breakthroughs we've had. Cures for diseases, computers, internet—shawarma, that one was pure scientific glory. And guns, you like guns, hell...science made your suit, Romanoff."

"Doesn't mean I need to know the inner workings," Natasha assured him with an air of indifference, "especially on the shawarma."

He snickered and he might have noticed his hand pushed a button if it weren't encased in armor. Unfortunately he didn't realize he had done anything to the cube until a pinkish mist sprayed out and right into the former assassin's face. "Oh...whoops?" Tony muttered out when the rather hostile look crossed her expression. She was wafting it away with her hand, eyes closed and she coughed a good three times while he grimaced behind his helmet.

"I'm going to kill you," Natasha choked out in an instant. Opening her eyes only lead to her vision being blurred and blacked out. She couldn't make heads or tails of anything.

"You uh—you okay?" Tony dared to ask.

She blinked several times in an attempt to clear her sight but nothing came through clear. She was _definitely_ going to kill him. Just as soon as she could see him.

"...Romanoff?"

"I can't see," she informed him with more than a little frustration.

Tony frowned in an instant and shoved the cube into the bag hanging on his armor. "Bruce?" he called into the comm.

" _Please don't say Code: Green._ "

"Not a Code: Green, buddy, but uh—we got a little problem, more of a Code: Romanoff is going to murder me, which I'm going to need a better name for by the way...take note of that," Tony informed him, "the cube I picked up sprayed something in her face. She can't see anything." He tested the theory by waving his hand in front of her face and he yelped when her hand snatched his arm. He realized by watching how her eyes stared straight forward though that it was an instinct rather than sight that allowed her to do it. "Yep...she can't see but her spidey senses are most definitely on par."

" _Get her back to the jet, now._ "

Tony assumed that was going to be the response. "You heard the man, Romanoff," he mentioned.

"Don't even think abo—" she was cut off when Tony hauled her right over the shoulder of his metal armor. She knew she released an 'oomph' when he did it and he blew out the window with a repulsor before he flew them through it. Flight wasn't at all a good sensation when she couldn't see a damn thing and when he put her back on her feet in the jet several minutes later she felt more than a little nauseous. She lowered her head for a second and took a few steadying breaths when she felt the movement beside her. She grabbed whatever hand reached for her next before she remembered it was friendly rather than hostile.

"Woah...just me," Bruce assured the redhead who held a death grip on his wrist. He shot Tony a dirty look because he knew the billionaire hadn't given Natasha any warning before grabbing the woman who couldn't see and taking flight.

"You did emphasize the 'now' part," Tony reminded him as he moved to the cockpit and removed his helmet, "I'll set the course for home. Better figure out what that stuff was."

Bruce shook his head before he looked back at Natasha. "Alright, come on," he told her when her hand finally released him. He put a steadying hand on her arm now and led her to one of the bench seats, "Sit down, let me take a look." For someone who couldn't see Natasha was surprisingly adept at knowing where things were because she sat down without needing to feel for the seat. "You've lost your sight before?" he questioned out of pure curiosity.

"Sort of," Natasha answered with a shrug. He certainly didn't need to know that she had trained blindfolded on more than one occasion and also memorized the layout of the jet and most other places she spent a lot of her time.

"That's ambiguous as always," he stated with a chuckle. He inclined his head to the side slightly and he supposed he hadn't really expected a real answer from her anyways. "About to touch you so—you know...try not to get handsy again," Bruce joked with her.

Natasha felt one corner of her mouth twitch upward of its own volition. "I think I'll be able to contain myself," she told him.

Bruce chuckled as he gripped her chin lightly in his hand and then he shined the penlight in one eye, then the other, then back to the first. "Normal pupil dilation," he stated, "can you see anything?"

"Sort of, mostly dark but a couple blurry bits of light," Natasha told him. His hand was gone from her face and she sat in silence as she listened to him opening a case and digging through it.

"Incoming again," Bruce warned her. Her chuckle was a relief to him because she was certainly taking this a lot better than most others would in her position, not including the part where she threatened to kill Tony, but he didn't entirely blame her for that one. He gripped her chin in his hand again and tilted her head up. "Alright, what I've got here is a saline solution. I'm going to see if we can rinse out whatever that chemical was. Better safe than sorry, I'd rather not leaving it settling," he warned next.

"I suppose a blind spy wouldn't be quite so useful," Natasha quipped.

Bruce smiled even though she couldn't see it. "Honestly somehow I don't think that would deter you in the slightest," he mumbled and again she was chuckling. "This'll sting, try not to blink though," he stated before he began pouring the solution. Her mouth was closed in a thin line but he could see her facial muscles tightening as he did it, yet even so she didn't blink once and he had to admit he was more than impressed by that. "You are by far the easiest patient I've ever had," he joked, glad to see that tight thin line of her lips quirk up slightly with a hint of amusement.

"That's a jab at me, I just know it," Tony called out from the cockpit.

Bruce snickered as he switched to her other eye and repeated what he had just done. Again he saw her facial muscles contract but again she didn't move in any other manner or bat an eye. He placed the empty bottle down before he lifted the towel and patted her face with it, then he eased her chin back down to a normal position. "Alright, blink a few times and tell me if it's any better," he told her. He watched as she did what he asked. Her eyes were red around the edges and the green in them was shining much brighter due to the solution.

Natasha blinked her eyes closed, then open, closed, then open. Slowly with each time it was a little better and on the third time she could actually make out Bruce's face. "Better," she told him, "still blurry but I can sort of see you now."

"That's good," Bruce assured her as he dug through the bag for another bottle of the solution. "One more round should clear you all up then so at least that's good news," he added. He forgot to actually warn her he was about to touch her again but she didn't try to stop him even if he saw her body stiffen on contact. He supposed most people wouldn't have noticed because it was almost a nonexistent shift in her posture but he made it a personal habit to note people's change in body language, mostly because he avoided actually talking to most people when possible. "Sorry," he apologized in an instant.

Natasha merely shrugged with an air of nonchalance but she was surprised he noticed so she said the only thing she could think to, "It's fine. Suppose I should've seen it coming, eh?"

Bruce chuckled in an instant. He hadn't talked with Natasha nearly enough to realize she could actually be funny if she wanted to be. Normally she was rather indifferent to them all, the occasional smile and controlled little laughs. Even as he started the second round of saline solution he wondered if she ever just let loose a little, relaxed, or did things that were outside her comfort zone. He supposed if he asked that out loud though she would probably say something about the pot calling the kettle black. He was outside his own comfort zone on a daily basis around the team and yet she just seemed to have a fortress around herself that was impenetrable even to herself. No one in, no Natasha out. Once again he finished what he was doing and he put the bottle aside, patted her face with the towel, then released her chin, "Alright—blink away."

She did as he said once more and blinked her eyes a few more times. Finally when she opened them Bruce's face came in completely clear and the strangest sensation ran through her body. Before she could stop it her entire body shivered and she saw the look of concern cross his face. She spoke before he could, "Perfect."

"Okay..." Bruce murmured as he narrowed his eyes. Her reaction was odd and suddenly the redhead looked entirely uncomfortable, a look he'd never actually seen on her before. "Are you okay?" he asked with uncertainty.

Natasha shook it off, quite literally as she shifted her head from side to side for a moment and then she gave him a smile, "I'm fine."

Bruce glanced up at the cockpit as Tony flew the jet and he frowned, "Tony, how long until we're back?"

"Two hours."

He looked back over at Natasha and was surprised to see how intently she was now studying him. Nobody had ever looked at him with quite that much intensity and he swallowed dryly. "I want to run a few tests when we get back, make sure that stuff didn't do anything else to you," he told her once he managed to get over the strange interaction.

"Sure," Natasha agreed. It was a few seconds later when he was on the opposite end of the jet when her mind started questioning her easy agreement. She _never_ agreed to examinations that easily and she rubbed at her face a little with confusion.

"Natasha?"

She took an uneasy breath before she glanced back over at Bruce.

"Are you sure you feel okay?" Bruce questioned again. She looked utterly baffled before he had said her name and he knew his concern was displayed over his face when she stopped rubbing at her confused face and looked at him. He glanced at the tiny bumps that had appeared on what little skin _was_ showing on her and then he asked the next question, "Cold?"

"Just a chill," she told him with a shrug as she leaned back on the bench seat. That changed in seconds as Bruce came back towards her and crouched down in front of her. "Okay...now I'm a little warm," she mentioned with baffled curiosity.

Bruce narrowed his eyes slightly and pressed the back of his hand to her forehead. "Well you're a little flushed but there's no fever," he told her. He felt his brow furrow when the redhead shivered again regardless of the pink tinge to her skin from her neck all the way up to her ears. "Alright...you definitely need an exam when we get back," he told her with a frown. He pulled his hand away and moved back when she shifted a rather unhappy look in Tony's direction.

"Stark, I swear you better figure out what you did to me back there or _when_ I kill you it's going to be slow and painful," Natasha warned the billionaire up front. She was more than happy to see him shift rather uncomfortably before he actually dared to look back at her with a more stoic expression of false amusement.

"Sure, sure, duly noted."

Natasha squinted it him in annoyance before she looked back at Bruce, "Why isn't he sick?"

"Filtration system in his suit I'm guessing," Bruce answered with a chuckle.

"Maybe I should make one for you," Tony called out over his shoulder, "didn't anyone ever tell you not to inhale, Romanoff?"

Natasha picked up the empty bottle of solution and used her back to 50/50 vision to send it careening right into the back of his head.

"Was that really necessary?" Tony grumbled out as he rubbed the back of his head.

Bruce let his laughter out silently and he knew his shoulders were shaking from trying not to laugh. He shook his head before he looked back at Natasha. The normally silent spy had an oddly easy look to her face rather than the carefully concocted neutrality or the false display of happiness he was used to seeing. It was strange. Her eyes even had a more pleasant look to them, like the all the terrible things that had hardened them just didn't exist for a moment. To be honest it was an astonishingly almost delicate look to her that reminded him she was so much younger than her life experiences let her look and feel on a regular basis. He also knew he stared far too long because she rolled her shoulders as a clear sign of discomfort and regarded him almost warily all the sudden.

"What?" Natasha dared to ask as Bruce stared at her with a rather amazed expression for several minutes. The red lit up the poor man's face when he realized what he had been doing and she couldn't resist poking fun at him regardless of the fact she knew it was actually just sheer embarrassment, "So am I contagious or do I just look particularly pretty today, Doc?"

Tony snorted out a laugh in an instant at her comment.

Bruce felt the heat further envelop his face immediately. "No, no—neither of those," he assured her. Both of her eyebrows raised up and he could hear Tony snickering all over again when he realized _what_ he had just said to her. "Oh...crap. That—that's not what I meant," he assured her quickly.

Natasha leaned forward into his person bubble so that there was only a fraction of space between their noses and regarded him with a playful expression, "So you think I look pretty?" The man swallowed heavily and she knew it was just a little too mean to continue any further when he looked like he just might piss his pants. She tapped his face playfully and winked, "I'm joking, Bruce."

He cleared his throat in discomfort when Natasha finally left his person bubble, leaned back on the bench seat, then shifted to a position where she was laying down instead. He was never more relieved to hear someone say her next words.

"I'm going to sleep, wake me up when we're back for your tests," Natasha informed him as she closed her eyes and turned on her side to face away from him. She swore if those two weren't here and her body felt any hotter though then she might have just stripped down and slept naked.

* * *

 **This isn't my usual writing style as I'm sure most of you already could tell. Normally I write in the perspective of a single person until I switch scenes but for this story I'll go with the more normal style of seeing the other characters thoughts and perspectives as well.**


	2. Chapter 2

Honestly I didn't expect people to be quite so into the story but hey—I can dig it. Here's some more for you with some awkward moments between our resident assassin and lovable dork. And let's not forget Tony who, in the words of **Invader Johnny** , has accidentally played cupid.

 **Chapter 2** :

Nothing seeming to be having any effect on the strange stainless steel looking cube. Tony had taken a hammer to the thing to absolutely no avail and even a blow torch didn't cut through it. He was half tempted to bring in a chainsaw as he pulled off the safety glasses and moved them to the top of the head, then he pulled the medical mask down under his chin.

"This thing is _not_ stainless steel contrary to it's rather shiny exterior," he called out to his AI.

"I thought that was fairly obvious after you failed to dent it with a hammer, sir," Jarvis stated in a way that Tony found rather demeaning.

He hated when his creation did that. His next thoughts were pondered aloud, "I'm betting it blows up."

"As do most things you touch, sir," Jarvis quipped.

He really needed to stop giving his programs such quirky personalities.

"You can't blow it up," Bruce called out as he removed the syringe from Natasha's rather patient arm. He couldn't help but squirm under gaze of the redhead though. He couldn't quite explain _what_ the look was but it was absolutely unnerving.

"I don't see any other way to get it open," Tony answered his friend, "and I tried pushing the button but I'm guessing that whatever that stuff was, it all sprayed into Romanoff's pretty face."

Bruce cringed and waited for Natasha to react but she didn't. "You can't blow it up, we need it," he stated vigilantly. Still, Natasha remained silent and instead she just continued to stare at him with her face flushed. He pulled the vial of blood out of the syringe and placed it inside the machine beside him, "Jarvis?"

"I'll begin the analyses immediately, Doctor."

"Still feeling hot?" he dared to ask, though given the heated tone to her skin he was going to hazard a guess at yes.

"Oh...you have no idea," Natasha mumbled out under her breath as she shifted in the chair. It wasn't even remotely close to the response she wanted to give and she frowned in an instant. In fact she _really_ needed to get out of this lab before she completely lost control of herself. A lack of control of her body's reactions was something foreign to her and she just couldn't acclimate to it, especially when it was effecting her vocally. "I—I'm gonna go," she told Bruce as she stood up, "just—just go somewhere else."

Bruce quirked an eyebrow up at her words, or rather, her lack of the ability to form a proper lie. Something was definitely off with her although suddenly he wasn't so sure that it was something he'd find in a blood test. "Uh, Natasha?" he called out as she headed for the elevator.

Natasha released a sigh before she turned around and looked back at Bruce. And there it was again, the chill, the shiver that went straight to her spine. "Yes?" she managed to get that out without her voice changing or without sounding like an idiot as she had a few moments ago.

"You guys said this was a mist right?" he dared to ask.

She frowned but nodded, "Yeah."

"And it didn't just get in your eyes?"

"It tasted and smelled like ass if that's what you're asking," Natasha told him with a chuckle. There also must have been a draft or something over by the elevator because she felt cooled off over here.

Bruce chuckled at her comment and gave a nod but at least now she seemed a little more like herself and less—well, less twitchy. He couldn't help but wonder if it was him that made her uncomfortable or maybe just the Other Guy, though he supposed to her they were one in the same. "I actually want to try an MRA," he told her.

Natasha tilted her head to the side slightly, "An MRA?"

"Like an MRI, Romanoff, but prettier," Tony called out, "he thinks your sudden weirdness is in your head."

She shot the billionaire a dirty look.

"Well, he's kind of right," Bruce admitted as he stood up, "I just want to see which part of your brain is—"

"Lit up like a Christmas tree," Tony finished for him.

Bruce groaned in an instant as he covered his face with one hand and shook his head.

"Actually I kind of wanna see too," Tony admitted as he stood up and walked over, mostly because he knew that look Natasha kept giving that scientist _quite_ well.

"And you two just happen to have a machine for this lying around?" Natasha questioned in slight disbelief.

Bruce bit down on his lip with slight embarrassment.

"We were originally using it on Bruce," Tony piped up without shame, "wanted to check out his brain function, see what lit up when he was going green."

"I take it the Big Guy didn't really appreciate that," Natasha mentioned with a sigh and shake of her head.

"Not so much," Bruce told her with a chuckle, "I tried to tell Tony it would never work. He wasn't going to keep that thing on. Turns out I pretty much pull it off and throw it when changing."

Natasha folded her arms over her chest as she finally made her way back over, "You mean sort of like how I tried to tell him not to _touch_ something if he didn't know if it was safe?" She shot a pointed look in the billionaire's direction.

Tony scrunched up his nose, "Why is it always my fault?"

"It _was_ your fault," Bruce and Natasha echoed at once.

Tony cleared his throat, "Right, well...you say 'to-may-to', I say 'to-mah-to'. Actually in this case I say 'to-may-to' so you guys must be saying 'to-mah-to'—eh...semantics."

"Wait here," Bruce told her as he went to the other room to get the scanner.

Tony narrowed his eyes as he studied the redhead but her pallor was returning to normal rather quickly. "Feeling better?"

She frowned when she realized he wasn't wrong, "A lot actually. It's weird...keeps happening on and off."

"Uh-huh," Tony mumbled out.

"You know something," Natasha stated in an instant.

She was good. Tony gave a slight shrug. "I _think_ I know something," he corrected quickly. He looked over as Bruce came over with the portable helmet scanner, "This is going to tell me if I'm right."

"Here, just sit here," Bruce told her as he motioned to the chair she had been in before.

Tony watched as Natasha sat in the chair and Bruce hovered over her, placing the tiny metal scanner over her head. He felt his mouth twitching in an instant when the flush came over her skin yet again and he hurried across the lab to the computer needed. "Hey, turn that on while you're adjusting it," he called out.

Bruce frowned but he did what Tony asked, flicking the button on the side of it while he continued getting it in place properly and adjusting it to stay on her.

Tony covered his mouth, trying not to laugh when he realized _just_ which part of Natasha's brain was lit up. The area of the brain just behind her left eye was lit up and the second he saw Bruce's knee brush hers, he also made note that the area lit up even brighter. And then he saw Natasha fidgeting again. It was just too good and he quickly disabled Jarvis from commenting on the findings. Once Bruce turned to head his way he quickly coughed and schooled his expression before stepping aside. As the scientist headed further and further away from her, the area behind her eye got dimmer and dimmer. Hell by the time Bruce got all the way over to where the information was displayed Natasha's pleasure center was completely clear, void of any and all indications it had been active before.

Bruce shifted places with Tony and glanced at the display on screen. "Weird..." he mumbled out as he used his hand to turn the display in a 360 degree spin. "Nothing," he stated with a sigh. He ran a hand through his hair and pulled his glasses off as he tried to think of anything else.

"Maybe you put it on wrong," Tony told him.

"It's a scanner, Tony, it scans," Bruce reminded him.

Tony shrugged.

"I'll double check," Bruce decided with a sigh.

 _And let the show begin_. Tony watched studiously as Bruce headed back over towards Natasha. Her eyes were on the poor man like a hawk and Tony could barely restrain himself from laughing when he watched her physical discomfort reappear and once again her brain started lighting up. He actually felt his shoulders shaking when Bruce's fingers gripped the scanner around her head and started adjusting it because the colors instantly lit with reds and oranges behind her eye.

"Anything?" Bruce called out.

It took all his effort to get his voice out normally but it was too good to let go, "Nope." He could hear Bruce sigh and Natasha groan with rather 'obvious' frustration. Obvious to Tony himself anyways but apparently not to those two. "Wait—try that last position again!" he called out. Bruce's hands brushed Natasha's face and _again_ the scanner went wild with color and ' _good grief'_ he wasn't sure how long he could keep himself from laughing.

Natasha Romanoff was completely turned on by Bruce Banner's presence in her immediate vicinity.

"Well?" Bruce questioned.

Tony also noticed another portion of Natasha's brain starting to gain some color and he knew what that was too, "Uh no—no, I was wrong. Except I am getting off this thing that she's a little pissed off."

"You have no idea..." Natasha grumbled as she fidgeted under Bruce's hands while he removed the scanner.

Oh...Tony definitely had some idea here.

Bruce sighed as he put the helmet scanner down and placed it on the table, "Well...maybe you should just go lay down for a while. Sleeping whatever it was off might help—meanwhile we'll keep working on it down here while Jarvis scans for results."

"Yeah I guess," Natasha agreed as she tugged at the top of her catsuit.

Tony thought about mentioning a cold shower but he definitely knew he'd be giving it all away if he did that. Instead he stayed quiet and went back to fiddling with the cube. Scientific curiosity was killing him. He wanted to see just how long it would take Natasha to figure it out herself. Hell...in all honesty he couldn't believe she didn't know already—it was _her_ body.

* * *

Natasha felt perfectly fine for the next few hours following her exit from the lab. It didn't make much sense at all but she was wearing a pair of black shorts and a red tank top regardless. She wasn't going to be stuck in a leather suit the next time her body decided to heat up like a damned toaster oven. She sat down on the couch in the living area and kicked her bare feet up on the coffee table as she flicked through the channels on the TV.

Sometimes it amazed her that there could be a thousand channels and still nothing on, though perhaps the reality was just that she wasn't really interested in it. "Jarvis, maybe you could just play something classical for me?" she called out to the AI. She just wanted to relax and forget for a bit that Tony had drugged her with something unknown from a HYDRA device.

"Of course, Miss Romanoff," Jarvis replied.

She blinked several times when the TV changed channels on its own and a black and white movie popped up. Apparently the AI misheard her.

But Jarvis seemed to realize his mistake, "My apologies, that was actually a classical setting for Doctor Banner."

She tilted her head to the side at the TV because she'd never actually _tried_ to watch classic movies. "You can leave it," she decided. Apparently Tony needed to remind his AI the difference between classical and a 'classic'.

"As you wish."

Natasha wasn't even sure how long she sat there watching, or what she was watching, but she knew at least an hour had passed. She actually considered that impressive because most things on TV she would have turned off and left the room ages ago. Then her body started heating up again without warning and she released a sigh before she fanned herself. Just when she thought she was over it. She groaned at the immediate discomfort it caused.

"Still no better?"

She actually jumped, physically jumped, when Bruce's voice met her ears.

"Uh...s-sorry, you're not usually—I mean...I didn't know you could actually be surprised by someone coming into a room," Bruce told her quickly, stunned by her physical reaction when he spoke from the doorway.

The heat pooled lower and the realization hit her like a sack of bricks. _It was Bruce_. She swallowed dryly before she dared to turn and look back at him. "Usually I'm not," she informed him before she sighed. There wasn't a chance in hell she was going to tell him the truth.

"You mind if I watch that with you?" he requested with uncertainty.

It seemed terrible if she said no but suddenly she wasn't sure what she would do stuck in close proximity of him. If she just left then he would know it was about him and that seemed like a worse option so instead she forced herself to try and relax as she answered, "Sure. Apparently it's your setting I'm watching anyways."

Bruce let out a tiny laugh at that but he couldn't exactly deny it. He moved around to the front of the couch and sat down. At first he didn't notice but after a second he did a double take at the redhead. He'd never seen her wear shorts and a tank top before and now he was watching her pull her hair up into a ponytail, something else he had never seen her do before. He tried his best to put his attention back to the movie playing but it was only a few minutes in when he saw her shifting on the other end of the couch, fidgeting really, and he just couldn't figure out quite what was wrong with her as she seemed to be drifting as close to the other end of the couch as physically possible.

Natasha was relieved to see that Bruce wasn't going to comment on her obvious issue even though she could see the bafflement clear as day on his face. The only bright side was that he seemed to have no idea it was only happening near him alone. She actually groaned out loud when two people kissed on the TV and she saw the wide-eyed look on Bruce's face when the noise left her lips. She covered her mouth in an instant and stood up. "Uh...I—I don't feel so hot," she mumbled out quickly. And it was the completely wrong thing to say.

"What's wrong?" Bruce questioned quickly, standing up with her and moving closer. She looked like she was on the verge of completely losing it and he was stunned when he went to grab her arm and steady her because she jumped as though she'd been burned. "Natasha?"

She backed away quickly and shook her head. "Nothing, nothing's wrong," she insisted and her next words came out far too quickly, "I just need air, it's really hot in here...is it really hot in here?"

He crinkled his brow in an instant as she continuously backed away and he could actually see her sweating now. "It's not hot," he assured her, "Nat you really need to come back down to the lab with me..."

' _Maybe if you offered to do a more physical exam...'_ The heat formed more intensely when the thought went through her head and she took one very non-gratifying deep breath. "Oh hell..." she stated quickly, "no—no, that's a bad idea." She wasn't sure if she was saying that to his suggestion or her own thoughts but she supposed it worked for both circumstances.

"Natasha—" Bruce frowned in an instant when the redhead ducked out of the room as quickly as she possibly could. "Jarvis, where did she go?" he questioned quickly.

"Miss Romanoff appears to be heading up to the roof, Doctor Banner."

He headed after her quickly.

Natasha took a few steadying breaths as the cool air of the night hit her face and at least now she could breathe again. She wasn't wrong, the moment she put distance between them her body cooled down and she felt normal again...so all she had to do was avoid him. It was a big damned tower, it wouldn't be that hard. "Oh no..." she mumbled out as her body flared up again. She _tried_ to ignore it and she _tried_ not to react when he placed a hand on her shoulder but when her mind said 'don't do it' her body apparently didn't agree. She turned in an instant and stood nose to nose with him, looking Bruce right in the eye and trying her damnedest to contain herself, but good grief he looked like something she could eat for breakfast.

"Natasha...you really need to go back down to the lab, you're not okay," Bruce told her quickly, trying his best to ignore just how close she was standing and how she seemed to be edging...was she getting closer? He actually took a step back when he felt her breath on his face and his heart raced at the look on her face. She looked like she was going to eat him alive. "Uh...Natasha?"

She took another step closer because now instead of flight she had more of an urge to touch, then her brain finally met with her body again and she quickly took a few steps back instead, then a few more until there was a largely safe distance between them. "Look, Doc...I really just—I just need to be left alone for a little while," she finally told him and her voice was throaty and raw.

"I'm really not comfortable with that..." Bruce told her.

"Then send Tony up," Natasha growled out before she could stop herself. She felt terrible in an instant because the poor man looked hurt but she swore that if Bruce got near her one more time she might actually jump him. "Please..." she added on as she sat down on the concrete roof and rubbed at her face. And if she could just put her hands on him she would—' _dammit_.'

Bruce frowned but he knew he wasn't going to convince her otherwise. "Alright...I'll get him," he assured her, "just...try to calm down."

Relief came the moment he was gone and she could finally breathe again. She didn't even have to see the quirky scientist for her body to react to his presence and she _knew_ Tony had to have known. He had to have noticed and _that_ was what he had meant earlier. She really was going to kill him. She relaxed for a good five minutes before Tony came up to the roof but her theory was proven correct when she didn't react to the billionaire in any way besides the anger that flared up in her chest.

"Uh..." Tony mumbled out, staring at the redhead who looked like she was a puddle of mush on the roof.

"You knew," Natasha grumbled out as she eyed him with distaste, "you _knew_ that I was reacting to him."

Tony snickered, "Took you long enough."

"Stark I swear, you need to fix this, _now_ ," Natasha told him as she stood up. She felt a little better when he took a wary step back from her.

Tony winced, "It can't be that bad."

"I can't stand in the same room with him," Natasha told him, "ten minutes and I felt like I was on fire."

Tony snickered.

"It's _not_ funny!" she insisted as she gripped his shirt, "I almost jumped the poor guy!"

That actually did make him laugh.

" _Tony!_ "

She used his first name and that actually made him shut his mouth, though admittedly he still cackled a few times. "Did you uh—did you...tell him?" he finally got out with his voice still heavy with the prior laughter, "you know, that he's making you horny?"

"God no," Natasha told him as she released his shirt, "and don't you dare think about it or I'll make you wish you were dead."

"Sexual arousal is completely natural, Romanoff," Tony assured her with a grin. The look of absolute outrage on her face made him put his hands up in mock-surrender, "Okay—okay...I won't say anything." He eyed her with even more amusement, "It really took you that long to figure it out though? I mean, no offense, but you're—you know..."

"I'm what?" she questioned as she quirked up an eyebrow daring him to say it.

Tony cleared his throat and went for a nicer term, "Uh...flirty?"

Natasha narrowed her eyes at him and barely managed not to say something terrible before she took a calming breath. Normally Tony's audacity didn't effect her on any level but apparently she was all out of whack with whatever was going on. "You sprayed that thing in my face so you better fix this soon," she ordered him firmly before she issued her warning, "or I'm gonna fix _you_."

Tony gulped, "Uh...I uh—I'll get right on that." He backed away from her to the door but he couldn't resist getting in the last word. "And try not to jump Banner while I figure it out!" he called out before making a run for it, "or do!"

Natasha groaned as she shook her head. Suddenly just the thought of him was making her hot and didn't know how in the world she was supposed to stop that from happening. Everything in her, mind _and_ body now, was telling her to be near Bruce.

And it was remarkably hard to ignore.

* * *

 **Gonna get cray-cray. Methinks Bruce is gonna figure it out. :P  
**


	3. Chapter 3

Sorry for the delay. I might've spent a good week binge sleeping like a fiend from the flu. Seems to have slightly dimmed my funny bunny now that I've returned to the land of the living though but hopefully this still gives you a laugh. :)

 **Chapter 3** :

A day and a half. That was how long ago Natasha got sprayed in the face and _one_ day was how long she had managed to avoid Bruce. Unfortunately Jarvis was ruining her streak after twenty-four hours and fifty-nine minutes.

"Miss Romanoff, Doctor Banner requests your attendance in the lab to give you information on your blood test results."

She scrunched up her nose, "Can't you just tell me?"

"I could but I was informed that you prefer Doctor Banner not know about your physical reaction being towards him," Jarvis stated matter-of-factly, "if I tell you rather than him tell you then he'll most certainly know that you're avoiding him."

And damned that AI for being right.

She was an assassin, a spy. She could be in the vicinity of the world's most awkward scientist and not rip his clothes off.

Natasha released a sigh before she got to her feet, "Let him know I'm on my way."

"Certainly, Miss Romanoff. Shall I prepare a cold shower for after your meeting?"

She groaned, "Hilarious." She paused in thought, "And...yes."

"Very well."

She got herself into the elevator and stared at the button for the floor where the lab was located for a good minute before she blew out a breath and smacked it. It was easy. Out of sight, out of mind—

Within sight?

Think of something that was a complete turn-off.

The elevator dinged and slid open faster than she wanted it to but she exited it nonetheless. The closer she got the more she felt control slipping and she bit down on her lip when she was only standing a few feet behind where he was seated.

She had to think of _something_.

Bugs. Spiders. Snakes.

 _Safe_. She seated herself down in the chair beside his and watched as he looked over at her.

"So, good news or bad news?" she questioned.

"Honestly it's not too terrible," Bruce admitted as he glanced at her. She seemed okay again, or rather, she wasn't fidgeting or looking like she was about to claw him in the face so he figured that was an added bonus. "Uh—you've got a few chemical imbalances," he told her, watching as she stared at him.

The snake thoughts stopped working really quick when her mind turned it into a sexual reference and she licked her lower lip before she spoke, "Alright...so what's that mean?" She was glad her voice came out normal and she quickly thought of a few more obsolete ideas.

Rats.

Rats worked. Furry, long wormlike tails, they ate dead people. That was gross enough.

"Uh—it should balance itself out naturally after some time has passed," Bruce informed her. He glanced back at the computer screen to read off the actual imbalances themselves rather than just the cliff notes explanation.

Natasha blinked several times as he spoke and she wasn't getting a single word of what he was saying to her. His lips were moving but it was like her mind was blocking out the actual words. Whatever his spiel was, while she had assumed it would be the least sexy thing in the world to hear someone spout scientific results, instead she found herself heating up at the sound of his voice. Especially when he adjusted his glasses.

Him using one damned finger to push glasses back into place onto the bridge of his nose should _not_ be hot.

And yet somehow, in this exact moment, it seemed like the single most attractive thing she had ever seen a man do.

When the hell did she wind up so close to him? Before she knew what was happening she was standing rather than sitting and she was leaning over his shoulder to look at the computer.

"Natasha?"

"Hm?" she hummed out as she shifted her gaze from the computer to Bruce.

"Did you hear any of that?" Bruce questioned as he studied her. She was being weird. Again.

"Chemical imbalance," Natasha repeated, "and it'll wear off."

Bruce supposed that was the gist of it but given that was how he had started the entire conversation off almost ten minutes ago he wasn't too sure what to think. "So um—Barton is going back to the facility, he's going to get all the info they have on that device," he told her next.

"That's nice," she murmured.

"Uh...Natasha?" Bruce questioned. He fell off the chair completely when he felt the heat of her breath blow into his ear. "W-what was that?" he mumbled out.

 _And holy mother of_...he looked even better on the floor. She could handle this. She chewed on her lower lip, "You okay?"

"I uh...I—" Bruce took a deep breath before he nodded. Maybe he had just imagined that. "Yeah, yeah. I um...I'm good."

He certainly was. _Dammit_. _Tony Stark._ Natasha quirked an eyebrow up. Unexpected...but effective. "Huh...didn't think that would actually work..."

"Didn't think what would work?" Bruce dared to ask as he got back to his feet and brushed his pants off.

Natasha found herself watching his hands as they wiped off invisible dust and dirt before she shook her head and looked back at his face. "Hm? Nothing," she answered after just a little too long. "So your professional opinion is that this imbalance will just balance itself out?" she finally questioned.

Bruce narrowed his eyes slightly and then nodded, "Uh...yeah. I thought I said that. Didn't I just say that?"

Probably best to just not answer that and she shrugged. "Good, then I'm going back to my room," she told him as she turned.

He inclined his head slightly to acknowledge what she said but he couldn't help his confused tone, "The whole time?"

"I think that's best," Natasha decided as she cleared her throat. He just looked so adorably confused that she could just eat him up and... _crap_.

"Did I do something?" Bruce finally dared to ask as he turned fully towards her, "because usually you dislike Tony a lot more than you dislike me but...well, right now you seem to really hate me for some reason."

 _Tony Stark. Tony Stark. Tony Stark._ "I don't hate you," Natasha assured him. Hell, far from it at this point. And dammit all to hell but even Tony wasn't working as a deterrent because her body heated up, a tingling sensation reverberated throughout her and—"Screw it..." she mumbled before she gripped the lapels of Bruce's shirt.

"Woah! Woah! No!" Tony called out as he rushed forward. He gripped his arms around the redhead's waist and yanked her away before she could planted a kiss on the unsuspecting scientist, causing Bruce to fall back into his chair with a wide-eyed and baffled look. "Bad! Bad Romanoff!" he scolded as he dragged her towards the exit of the lab.

Bruce stared, his brain silenced as he tried to figure out exactly what the hell had just happened. He wasn't sure if what just happened— _actually happened—_ or if he was just imagining things. Was she just about to _kiss_ him? That seemed like the most implausible figment of his imagination that his mind could have ever concocted but then again, he also never would have thought Natasha would let Tony somewhat manhandle her. He watched as Tony and Natasha argued rather heatedly outside the lab but he couldn't hear a word either of them were actually saying.

"Oh my God..." Natasha mumbled out, covering her face with her hands as she groaned, "I just...oh crap."

"Were you seriously just about to plant a kiss on that man?" Tony questioned, "Are you _trying_ to shock that man into a heart failing hulk-out?" He was stunned by what he had walked in on and as he looked at how mortified Natasha was and how completely confused and shell-shocked Bruce was, apparently she really was that out of control of her own actions.

Natasha turned away from him and groaned. She would have screamed if she thought it might actually help. "There's gotta be a way to keep me away from him. I don't care what it is but—but tie me up, lock me in my room with food and water, actually forget that—I can break out of my room and just about any other place you could think to put me..." she ranted on before she turned back to Tony, "lock me in the Hulk cage!" That seemed like a decent plan. "Drug me and put me in the damned Hulk cage," she finally decided.

"Yeah—no," Tony chuckled as he watched her fret and pace the tiny two foot span between the lab doors and the elevator, "I'm not locking you up on the offense of 'me so horny'."

She bit her lip as she glanced back in at Bruce and her mind said 'go' and her body started moving back into the lab.

"No, no, nuh-uh," Tony told her quickly, grabbing her arm and pulling her into the elevator. He pushed her into it, "Bruce bad, elevator good. Stay... _Stay_. Good girl."

Like she was a dog. He was treating her like a damned dog. "Stark, you don't get it," she told him quickly, "this isn't going to help! You need to _do_ something!"

"Just go to your floor. Cold shower, take a cold shower, Romanoff," Tony assured her. "Does that even work on women?" he wondered aloud.

"Dammit Tony!" Natasha growled out as he closed the elevator doors on her. He didn't even give her the chance to tell him that putting distance between them was useless now.

Tony grimaced as he went back into the lab and saw Bruce _still_ staring wide-eyed and confused, "Uh...hey buddy."

"What uh...what just happened?" Bruce finally dared to ask his friend.

Natasha was going to kill him but Tony told him anyways, "So, little twist—that stuff that sprayed her in the face and that chemical imbalance you were talking about?"

Bruce stared at him.

"You really aren't getting it, are you? It's uh—well..." Tony mumbled out before he groaned. This was awkward. Might as well just get it over with. "Romanoff wants your uh— _whole package,_ " he informed Bruce as he emphasized with his hands.

"She—she what?" Bruce questioned in confusion.

"It made her horny Bruce, like...really horny," Tony explained with a roll of his eyes, "for you."

"For—wait what?" he couldn't wrap his head around what Tony just told him and Bruce looked wide-eyed at his friend.

Tony groaned. "Jeez Bruce. Natasha got sprayed in the face and it makes her want Big Bruce's," he outlined Bruce's entire body before he motioned towards Bruce's groin, " _little_ Bruce." And the look of absolute shock and horror crossed Bruce's face in an instant so Tony figured that one got the point across.

While it made all of her reactions since their return a hell of a lot more sensible Bruce just couldn't find it in him to find it plausible. "She wouldn't...I mean not—not _me_ ," he insisted.

"That woman just grabbed you by the shirt and was about to ravage you and have her way with you, and you don't believe me?" Tony groaned out, "unbelievable."

"...why me?" Bruce finally asked him. It was all he could think to ask once he realized it hadn't actually been his imagination tricking him into thinking Natasha had been about to kiss him.

Tony narrowed his eyes slightly. He hadn't actually thought of that before. She wasn't reacting to anyone else, or rather, she wasn't reacting to Tony himself. "Huh..." he murmured, "hadn't actually thought about that. Maybe she secretly had the hots for you already."

Bruce laughed in an instant, he couldn't quite help it, "That's absurd."

"Sirs," Jarvis piped up, "Agent Barton has uploaded the data from the facility via satellite that will give some insight into that question. Shall I give you the highlights?"

"Let it rip, J," Tony replied.

"According to this file, the mist was originally meant to be used to temporarily alter one's mind and allow it to be influenced. It seemed it didn't quite work as intended. Several tests showed that during a five day period, subjects would show increasing desire towards one individual whose pheromones attracted them."

Bruce just blinked.

"Are you saying that Romanoff likes the way Bruce smells?" Tony questioned before he snorted out a laugh.

"Technically, yes," Jarvis replied, "the mist evokes a more primitive response in the subject. Each person who it was used on admitted to reacting to the person in their typical environment that they deemed as the most dominant."

Bruce laughed again, it was just too ridiculous, "Wait...what?"

"Bruce...dominant?" Tony snickered in an instant, "you're gonna have to explain that one, J. Bruce, have you been running around with a whip and handcuffs, wearing a leather suit, and not telling me?"

"Oh hell..." Bruce mumbled out.

Jarvis ruined Tony's fun in an instant, "On the contrary it would likely have nothing to do with that, sir. Each human brain perceives different things as more dominant traits. Without Miss Romanoff telling us then there's no way to know for certain why she perceives Doctor Banner to be the more dominant of the group."

"Damn," Tony grumbled.

"Also, Agent Barton not so regretfully asked me to inform you that he shall not be returning to the tower to be the 'Jay Jammer' for Miss Romanoff due to fear of bodily harm."

"Jay Jammer?" Bruce questioned in confusion.

Tony snickered, "I'm assuming that's the female equivalent of a cockblock, Bruce."

Bruce felt the heat rise to his face in an instant.

"So, five days," Tony stated as he tilted his head to the side, "that's not so bad Bruce. We're almost two days in."

"Three more days and she'll be fine?" Bruce dared to ask.

"That's what the data says, Doctor," Jarvis answered.

Bruce sighed, "Alright. Three days...what's the worst that could happen in three days?"

Tony snickered. "You did hear the part where it says she will 'increasingly' desire you?" he questioned, "you're going to have to play keep away."

"Keep away?"

Tony motioned towards his lower extremities, "Keep away, buddy. Avoid her. Right now she is not Romanoff, or Natasha, she is—well, she's Rompin' Romanoff and you—you are he who must not let himself be romped."

Bruce put his face in his hands and shook his head. This couldn't really be happening.

"Hey, somebody here is going to have to be the mature adult and it's not gonna be me," Tony assured him as he leaned back in the chair, "and unfortunately Romanoff's not trustworthy for that due to the fact she wants to shove your face between her lady business and..." he made a motorboating noise as he moved his face side to side quickly, "so—that leaves you to be the mature one."

"Tony, this better actually wear off in three days," Bruce warned his friend, "because if it doesn't then and she doesn't kill you then the I just might."

"Duly noted." Tony snickered as he crossed his arms, "But just so you know, if Romanoff does jump your bones then I expect explicit details."

"Tony!" he groaned out in disbelief.

"What?" he questioned, "Pepper's been away for a few weeks. I need to live vicariously through others."

Bruce rolled his eyes, "Well...are you going to tell her?"

"No way," Tony stated, "not a chance. I cockblocked that woman and then put her in an elevator and told her to 'stay'. She's going to murder me."

"Well I'm not doing it," Bruce told him quickly, "she scared me _before_ this. Now she's absolutely terrifying."

"Jarvis?" Tony called out.

He swore the AI actually sighed, "Very well, Sir."

And they both released a sigh of relief at that one.

* * *

 **You ever have one of those moments where you had so many ideas running rampant, then you went to sleep and...BAM. They all disappear. It drove me nuts, still is actually.  
**

 **Jay Jamming goodness shall ensue.**


End file.
